Hi! Stopping by to say hello! It's hard to believe it's late September! Plan now to do something fun for the weekend while the weather is still mild! It's a great time to go for a walk or hike, ride your bicycle or play some tag football in the back yard!

Happy New Year and congrats on taking the first step to reaching a healthier you! I'm glad you're getting active with SparkPeople - it's a great community, wonderful resources and fantastic support.

Please check out the SparkTeams - I think you will find a lot of others 'just like you' there. You can choose SparkTeams by age group, lifestyle or interests, geographic location or several other ways - in fact, I suggest joining more than one group, post your intro there and write blogs as often as you can - you will find tons of friends and support that way, I promise!!

In my experience, SparkPeople is like a in some ways - it's lots of fun and easy to make friends because we're all in this together. I like the way a HEALTHY LIFESTYLE is emphasized instead of a 'quick fix wonder diet' - it's about waaaaaay more than 'just' losing weight so you have definitely come to the right place!

If you ever need any help using features of the site, there are tutorial videos under the HELP section that can show you how to use the features of the site. You can also find them on the START page and several other places on the site.

If you haven't discovered The Spark book and/or the SparkDiet linked at the bottom of the START page, check them out - the program is simple but extremely effective. There is a TON of information on this site - so much it might even seem overwhelming but fortunately we don't have to 'digest' everything at once! The FastBreak program is a good way to start.

Another nice thing about SparkPeople is that we have permission to be human - we don't have to change everything at once or be in a hurry to reach our goals. Take a few baby steps and then a few more and before you know it, you'll have completed a long journey - I hope you enjoy this community as much as I do - it teaches us how to make positive lifetime changes because that's the only thing that will work over time!

Thanks, Pattie for welcoming me to Spark People. As you can see, I have a very long road to go, but I have to stay focused. I have tried (in vain) many times to lose weight, but always manage to gin back anything I lose & then some. I have some medical limitations that prevent me from being able to walk or stand for very long at a time. I have has surgery on both ofmy Achille's tendons. Any suggestions for excercise that does not involve walking, standing or running, would be appreciated. Thanks again for the welcome. Hugs, Bev

Hi! I see you've joined Gamers Getting Gorgeous. I, My sister and my daughter are all on that team, too. I also see that you're a brand new SPARKer! Congratulations! You've come to a great place. I, just today, reached my 25 pound marker, AND got firmly into the land of the 2s (200s), never to be in 300ville again! Well another team leader designated today as HUDDLE day. Come to the team page and Huddle, try the games, introduce yourself...have fun. (If you've already done that, accept my apologies...missed it) I'll look so forward to getting to know you and cheering you on.